Car door



Feb. 3, 1925. 1,525,296

K. M. HAMILTON CAR DOOR Filed April 1e, 1923 2 shuts-sheet. 1

Feb. 3, 1925.

y K. M. HAMILTON CAR DOOR Filed April 16. 1923 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 PatentedFeb. 3, 1.925. y

inzage@ unirse srarss PATENT OFFICE.

KARL ivi, HAMILTON, ororiicaeo, immers, ssieivon To THE B Errnnnonr GOM-PANY, or BETTENDORF, Iowa, e. CORPORATION or IOWA.

CAR DOOR.

Application led April 1:6, Y19423. Serial No. 632,280.

To all eelt-m t may concern.'

Be it known that I, KARL M. HAMILTON, a citizen of the United States',residing at Chicago, in the county of Cool; and State of Illinois, haveinvented a certain new and useful improvement in Car Doors, of which thefollowing is a full, clea-r ,'concise, and exact description, referencebeing had to the accompanying drawings, forming a part of thisspecification.

This invention relates to car doors.

One object of the invention is to provide an end door structure ofsimple and strong construction, especially adapted for railway cars ofthe box or house type, so arranged that lumber or other long materialmay be easily and eliiciently loaded into the car.

A further object of the invention is to provide an end door structure ofthe type indicated, in which the door frame is stamped from sheet metal,and the door associated therewi-th in such a manner that the same isself-closing, burglar and weather proof.

VA still further object of the invention is to provide a door structureof the type indicated wherein a metal threshold is provided, whichover-laps the lower wall of the door opening in the end of the` car,thus providing means on which the material may be slid while loading.

Another object of the invention is to provide a door construction,wherein the hinge connection is fully protected by a water shed orflashing.

A more specilic object. of the invention is to provide simple andefficientV automatic latching mechanism for holding a door in closedposition, having a means associated therewith for receiving a car seal,and wherein additional means is provided for locking the door from theinside of the. car to preclude the opening thereof from the outside,when this is desired.

Other objects and advantages of the invention will more clearly appearfrom the description and claims "hereinafter foil-g lowing.

In the -drawings forming al part 'of this specification, Figurel 1 is an:eleva-tional view of a portion "of the end wall `of a car, showing myimprovements in connection therewith. Fig. 2 is a transverse,horizontal, sectional view, corresponding substantially to theline -2-2of Fig. 1. Fig. 3 iS,l -@Verifica-1,

sectional view, corresponding substantially to the line 3 3 of Fig. 1,the latching mechanism an'd locking pin being shown in elevation. Fig. tis avertical, sectional view on an enlarged scale, similar to Fig. 3, ofthe lower portion of the door structure, showing t-he latching mechanismin section. And Fig. 5 is a detail perspective lview of one of the hingebutts.

In the drawings, denotes the end wall of an ordinary single sheath boxcar, to the outer face of which are `secured vertically extendingreinforcing Z-bars v11--11. The wall 10 is provided with a rectangulardoor open-ing 12 located between the Z-bars, the opposite vertical sidewalls of the door opening being inwardly spaced Afrom said bars.

The improved door` construction, as shown, comprises, broadly, a frameA; a hinged door B; a flashing C; an 'end plate D, a pair of hinge buttbrackets E; a latching mechanism F; and a locking pin G.

The frame A is in the form of a rectangular sheet metal plate, havingintegral, right angular, vertically extending, outwardly projectingflanges 13 at the opposite sides thereof, rigidly secured to the webs ofthe Z-bars 11 by any suitable means, such as rivets 14. As clearly shownin Figs. 1 and 2, the flanges 13 extend from the lower edge ofthe platetoa point approximately in line with the upper wall of the door opening12. The plate forming the frame A is of `such a size as to extend anappreciable distance above and below the upper and lower walls andbey-ond the side walls of the'opening '12, and is provided witha dooropening 15 adapted to register with the opening 12. Along the side andbottom edges of 'the opening 15, the plate forming the frame A is :bentoutwardly to provide a continuous` bead or rib 16, the bead at thebottom edge terminating in an inwardly projecting 'horiz ontal flange 17extending at right angles to the bottom portion of the plate, and thebead v portions at Ithe iside edges terminating in inwardly projecting,vertical flanges 1S also extending at right angles to the Ibodj.vportion of the plate. Along the top edge of the opening 15, the plateforming the frame A is bent outwardly to provide a. horizontal flange19, having the outer edge curved downwardly and terminating in adownwardly extending vertical portion 20 overhanging the Opening 15. TheOpposite ends of the flange 19 merge with the vertical side portions ofthe bead 16, thus: providing a continuous, outwardly projecting,peripheral wall around the opening 15 of great strength and especiallyadapted to resist blows. As clearly shown in Fig. 3, the flanges 18 arecut away on diagonal lines at their lower ends, have their upper endsspaced from the upper wall of the opening 15, and part-ly overlap theinner faces of the side walls of the opening 12. The horizontal flange17 is coextensive in length with the lower wall of the opening 12,extends inwardly a greater distance than the flanges 1S and forms athreshold protecting the lower wall of said opening. The parts are soproportioned that the outer faces of the flanges 17 and 16 snugly engagethe bottom and side walls, respectively, of the opening 12, therebyaiding in holding the frame A in proper position.

The door B is preferably formed of sheet steel, iis of Generallyrectangular outline and has the major portion thereof off-set outwardly,thereby providing' a flat, generally rectangular portion 21 havingrounded corners; inwardly projecting, continuous top, bottom and sidewalls 22, 23 and 24, conforming to the outer wall defined by the bead 16and the flange 19; and a continuous top, bottom and side flange 25 lyingin a pla-ne parallel to the portion 21. The top portion of the flange 25is co-extensive with the width of the door, and is extended upwardly,terminating in a rolled edge 26 enclosing and retaining a hinge rod 27.lhe hinge rod 27 extends outwardly beyond the side edges of the door asutlicient distance to properly co-act with the hinge but-t brackets E.

The flashing C is in the form of a flat plate, co-extensive in widthwith the door B, having the lower end portion thereof bent outwardly anddownwardly, as shown in Figure 3, in loosely embracing overhangingrelation to the rolled edge 26 of the door, thereby forming a watershedding flange 28, )reventing water from entering between the door andthe door frame A, The flat portion of the flashing plate C is interposedbetween the door frame A and the lower end portion of the end plate D,and has the upper edge thereof in alinement with the upper edge of thedoor frame. The plate C is secured to the end wall of the car by bolts29, or any other suitable means, passing through the saine and the endplate D. The end plate D extends across the end wall of the car beneaththe Z-bars 11 and has the lower edge thereof in abutment with the upperface of the flange 28.

The hinge butt brackets E are of similar construction, one being rightand the other left, Each of the brackets E consists of au upper, flat,plate-like portion 30, a lower portion comprising, an outwardly project-Y ing, downwardly curved flange 31 conforming to the fla-nge 28 andadapted to overlap and cover one of the outer end portions of the same;and a thickened hinge rod supporting portion 32, provided with a bore 38adapted to receive one end of the hinge rod 27 The portion 32 extendsdownwardly beyond the flange 31, is formed with an outer curved face andhas the rear face thereof, offset with respect to the rear face of theplate as indicated at 33, thereby providing a horizontal shoulder 34.The plate is also provided with a vertically extending, centralreinforcing rib 35, which merges with the flange 31 and the hingesupporting portion The hinge butt brackets E, as clearly shown in Figs.1 and 3,.

are located at the upper end of the door at the opposite sides of thedoor opening 15 and are rigidly secured to the end plate D and theflashing C by rivets 36 extending therethrough and through the openings37 in the plate portions of the brackets. The offset portions 33 of thebrackets E project beneath the end plate D with the lower edge of thelatter in abutting relation to the shoulders 34. The flanges 31, whichover-lap and cover the ends of the rolled edge 26 of the door A, formsheds effectively protecting the hinge connection between the rod 27 andthe brackets E from the weather.

In assembling the door frame A and the door B, the frame is firstassembled with the flashings C and the end plate D. The hinge bracketsare then placed in position on the door by engaging the projecting endsof the hinge rod 27 within the bores 38 brackets E. The door with thebrackets E attached is next placed in proper position on the door frameand the brackets secured in place bv the rivets `36.

To automatically latch' the door B when the same swings to closedposition, the latching mechanism indicated at F is provided. Thelatching mechanism F comprises a spring pressed, reciprocating lat-chplunger 39 adapted to co-act with a latch bracket 40. The plunger 39 isslidably mounted for reciprocating movement in housing 41, riveted tothe lower portion of the door B. The plunger is pressed outwardly by aspring 42 interposed between the upper wall of the housing and theslotted plate 43 locked to the plunger 39 by engagement within thecircumferential groove 44 thereof. The plate 43 in addition to servingas an abutment 'on the plunger co-acting with the spring, also limitsmovement of the plunger outwardly of the housing. The plunger isprovided with a beveled lower end adapted to engage within a recess inthe latch bracket 40. As clearly shown in Figure 4, the latch bracket 40is in the form ot' an angular plate and is rigidly secured to the endwall of the car by bolts 47 or any other suitable means. v

It will be evident that when the door swings to closed' position, thebeveled' Aend #l5 'of the plunger 39' will engage the edge of thebracket 40', ride upwardly thereon, compressing the spring 42", and willbe projected into the opening d6. by the spring 42 when the door reachesits closed position. y

Means is also provided to permit the attachment of the usual car sealwhen the door is in closed position to prevent unauthorized opening ofthe door and theft. rlhis means comprises a 'laterally extending ii'ange4S integral with the lower portion of the plunger 39, provided with aseal receiving opening a9 adapted to register with a seal receivingopening 50 in the plat-e 40, when the door is in closed position.

On 'the inner side ot the door, near the bottom thereof, is rigidlysecured an angular bracket 5l, havingthe horizontal flange 52 thereoicpro-vided with an opening 53' adapted to register with an opening 54 inthe fla-nge 17 of the doorframe A when the door is in closed position.The openings 53' and 5st are adapted to receive the locking pin G,whereby the door may be locked in Vclosed position from the insideindependently of the outer latching mechanism, wheire the end door isnot required in loading the car and when the car contains a valuablecargo.

In loading box cars with long material, such as lumber, it .is the usualpractice, especially when the car has been nearlyfilled, to pass thematerial into the car through the end door opening, thus subjecting theside and bottom walls of the opening to considerable wear, especially incars of wooden construction. As the material is slid over the lower doorwall in loading, the latter will, ordinarily, be subjected tothegreatest amount ot damage. 'By protecting the bottom wall of the openingby a metal sill, and the side walls by metal lanoes, as hereinietoredescribed, all damage to the wallsof the opening is minimized.

It will be evident that, by forn'iing the door and iframe each of onepiece construction, the parts are made seamless, water tight and dangeroi corrosion reduced.

It will also be evident that, in addition to producing a weather prooiconstruction by providing the one piece door vframe with the projectingbead which surrounds the door opening and co-acts with the top, bottomand side walls of the oti'set door portion, the bead also forms astrengthening rib which reinforces the entire iframe structure.

It will be understood that, although the door Jframe, door and otherpartsare herein shbwn and described as being formed ot sheet metal, theinvention is not limited thereto, and the Lparts may be otherwiseformed. It willy also be appreciated by those skilled in the art thatinyimprovements are equally adaptable to box cars having socalled metalends and that my improvements, whether applied to all wood or metal endbox cars, are equally adapted to new and old cars.

I have herein shown and described what I now consider the preferredmanner of cai'- rying out the invention, but the same is merelyillustrative and I contemplate all changes and modiiications that comewithin the scope ot' the claims appended hereto.

I claim:

vl. Ina box car having an end wall provided with an end door openingtherein and exteriorly braced by vertically extending beams, thecombiiiatio-n with a metal door traine member having an opening adaptedto register with said first named opening, said member being providedwith portions at each side by which it may be rigidly secured to saidbeams; of a door movably attached to the door frame member and arrangedto close the opening therein.

2. In a car having an end wall formed of wood provided with a dooropening, the combination with a unitary sheet metal door frame, having adoor opening therein adapted to register with said iirst named opening,said frame being provided with inwardly bent projecting marginal flangesat the door opening adapted to overlie and protect the walls of saidiirst named opening 5v of a one piece outwardly opening door exteriorlyhinged to said 'trame and adapted to "close said opening.

3. In a car having an end wall provided with a door opening, thecombination with a metal door trame comprisinga plate-like port-ionhaving face contact with said end wall and f having a door opening`therein adapted to register with said first named opening, saidplate-like portion being provided with a. bead at the marginal edge ofthe said opening therein and flanges inwardly projecting from said beadand adapted to ove-rlie and protect the walls of said i'lrst namedopening; ot a one piece door hinged to said traine and adapted to closesaid opening, said door being provided withan inwardly projecting liangeadapted to engage over said bead when the door is swung to closedposition.

Ll. In a car having a wall provided with a door opening, the combinationwith a metal door frame secured to said wall and having a door openingtherein adapted to register with said iirst named opening, said framebeing provided with an outstanding hollow bead at the marginal edge ofthe opening therein; of a one piece metal door 'hinged to said trame andadapted to close ZIO said opening, said door being provided with aflange adapted to eXteriorl overlie and abut said bead when the door 1sclosed.

5. In a car having a wall provided with a door opening, the combinationwith a unitary door frame fixed to said wall and having a door openingtherein adapted to register with said first named opening, the margin ofsaid frame surrounding said opening being outwardly offset withreference to said end wall; of a one-piece door adapted to close saidopening, said door being provided with a flange adapted to exteriorly`over-lap said offset portion when the door is closed.

6. In a door construction, the combination with a unitary sheet metaldoor frame having a door opening therein surrounded by a continuous,outwardly projecting hollow bead; of a one piece sheet metal dooradapted to close said opening, said door being provided with acontinuous flange along the bottom and side edges thereof conforming tosaid bead and adapted to overlie and substantially fit the latter whenthe door is in closed position.

7. In a door construction, the combination with a unitary door framehavinga door opening therein surrounded by a continuous outstanding wallof a one piece dooil adapted to close said opening, said door having amajor portion thereof outwardly off-set to provide a continuous wallconforming to and adapted to eXteriorly overlap said outstanding wall ofthe frame when the door is in closed posit-ion.

8. As an article of manufacture, a sheet met-al door frame comprisinga'liat platelile portion provided with a door opening, said door openingbeing surrounded by a continuous rib outwardly projecting from one sideof said fiat plate, and inwardly projecting flanges formed integral withthe lower and side portions of said rib, said ribs extending anappreciable distance beyond the opposite side of said plate.

9. In a car having an end wall provided with a door opening, thecombination with a door frame applied to the exterior of said wall andhaving a door opening therein adapted to register with the first namedopening; of an outwardly opening door exterior-ly hinged to, and closingagainst the outer side of said frame; and means overhanging the hingededge of the door to protect the same from the weather.

10. In a car having an end wall provided with a door opening, thecombination with a door frame having a door opening therein registeringwith the first named openinol; ofa door having a hinge rod secured tothe upper edge thereof; and hinge butts secured to said frame andreceiving the opposite ends of said rod, said butts being provided withinwardly extending flanges adapted to overhang the hinge rod adjacentthe ends thereof.

11. In a car having a wall provided' with a door opening, thecombination with a door frame having an opening therein registering withthe first named opening; of a door having a hinge rod secured to theupper edge thereof; and hinge butts secured to said frame pivot-allyreceiving the opposite ends of said rod, said but-ts being provided withinwardly projecting flanges overlapping the side edges of the door and'portions of the hinge rod adjacent said edges.

l2. In a car having a wall provided with a door opening, the combinationwith a door frame having an opening the-rein registering with said firstnamed opening; of a door having hinge pivots projecting from theopposite edges thereof; hinge but-t members secured to said frame andeach provided with aI portion adapted to receive one of said pivots; anda flange forming a continuation of each of said hinge-receiving portionsand overlapping the adjacent side edge of the door.

13. In a door for railway cars, the combination with a pivoted hingeconnection; of a hinge-pin receiving portion; and a water sheddingflange for said connection, said flange forming a continuation of saidhinge pin receiving portion.

14. In a car having an end wall provided with a door opening, thecombination with a door frame having a door opening therein adapted toregister with said first named opening; of a door having an upper rollededge; a pivot rod enclosed by said rolled edge and extending outwardlybeyond the opposite edges of said door; a plate secured to the frameabove the door and having a flange at its lower edge overhanging saidrolled edge; and hinge butt members secured to said frame, said membersbeing provided with bearing parts adapted to receive the opposite endsof said rod, said members being further provided wit-h inwardlyprojecting flanges adapted to over-lap the opposite ends of the flangeon said plate.

15. In a car having an end wall provided with a door opening, thecombination with a door frame having a door opening therein adapted toregister with said first named opening; of means for hinging said doorto said frame including, hinge butt members; and water shedding meansover-hanging the hinged edge of the door.

1G. In a car having an end wall provided with a door opening, thecombination with a door frame having a door opening' therein adapted toregister with said first named opening; of means for hinging said doorto said frame including hinge butt members; and water shedding meansover-hanging the hinged edge of the door, including a plate having anoutwardly projecting flange and flanges associated with said hinge buttmenibers and over-lapping said first named flange.

17. In an end door for box cars, the combination with a unitary doorframe member having an opening therein and adapted to be applied to theouter face of the car end; of a door hingedly attached along its upperedge to said member and adapted to swing against the outer side of saidframe member to close said opening, co-operating inter-litting meansaround the side and bottom edges of said opening on the door framemember and door providing a Weather seal when the door is closed; andWeather protecting flashing projecting outwardly from the frame andextending over the hinge connection between the door and door framemember.

In Witness that I claim the foregoing l have hereunto subscribed my namethis 11th 2o day of April, 1923.

KARL M. HAMILTON. IVitnesses FRANCES SAVAGE, HARRIETTE M. DEAMER.

